Goodbye Redsfest, Hello Disney

Another Redsfest is behind us and as is often the case, I roll directly into the Winter Meetings.

Before getting to that, it was nice getting access to Jamie Ramsey’s “Better off Red” lounge on the Redsfest floor.

Once given my enchanced pat down by Jamie’s security detail, I could lounge on one of the sofas and be regaled by Jamie’s anecdotes along with Reds front office member Ryan Rizzo (pictured, left). Jamie politely offered copies of his TigerBeat magazines for Ryan and I to peruse and then showed off his autographed photos from the cast of Yo Gabba Gabba. So, thanks Jamie. Good times.

I’m on the ground in Florida and checked in at the hotel for the Winter Meetings. This is the first time I’ve attended the meetings at a site they’ve been before. Like four years ago, we are converging at the Swan and Dolphin Resport Hotel at Disney World in Florida. Check here and on the main web site and on Twitter to get updates. For now, I just have a couple of photos.

It was here at the end of a very quiet meetings for the Reds that the Reds dropped a bit of a bombshell.

During the Rule 5 Draft, I remember hearing the Cubs used the third selection to take Josh Hamilton. I was thinking I didn’t know he was allowed to play because of his suspensions for drug use. The next thing I know about 15 minutes later, the Reds acquired Hamilton from the Cubs. GM Wayne Krivsky and scouting director Chris Buckley traded cash to the Cubs in exchange for the pick. Only at the last second did the Reds inform the Cubs with a slip of paper that it was Hamilton.

Hamilton, of course, had a solid rookie season with the Reds and rebuilt his career. His trade to the Rangers for Edinson Volquez was rated as even since both did well in 2008. Now Hamilton is the AL MVP. Volquez is freshly returned from Tommy John surgery. If Volquez gets back to his 17-win, All-Star form in 2011, fans will likely rate it positively again.

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